White Snow (Revised)
by Lakadako
Summary: Natsume is assigned to a powerful partner, and wants to know who she is. Mikan is a new student, but gives air of mystery. Will Natsume ever wonder if who Mikan's true identity is? NxM
1. Her arrival

Chapter 1: Her arrival (Revised)

Ashes and gun powder fumes the air with a strong stench of blood from the countless kills that were committed tonight, and there was specifically a strong smell from the countless wounds that were shot by professional alice users that function like excellent tracking dogs. Our young alice user, Natsume Hyuuga, was a brilliant lad that possesses the fire alice that burns his opponents alive as if they were burning in hell. Now bleeding to death, Natsume Hyuuga lies in an office room in silence as he waits for Death to get him, or even a gun man to finally finish him off. As he lays in his pool of blood, patiently waiting for his life to end, he ponders over what will befall to his sister after he's gone.

Will she finally be freed from the shackles of the school called Alice academy, or will she be killed if she was unnecessary?

Natsume tries to move his body, but the extreme pain made it futile to do anything. The thought of Persona laying a finger on his little sister boiled his blood so much, he continued the struggle to stand up. As if teasing him, his mind said to stand but his body said otherwise. Frustrated and angry over his helplessness, he started crying and cursed to the air.

"…of all times…why now? Fuck…" Natsume said before he coughed up blood.

He heard the door creaked open and footsteps walking towards him.

Before the boy's eyes was a strange looking girl that doesn't particularly look like she belonged to the enemy, nor was anyone he recognized. She had long black hair and a kimono that were black as night, but her white cat mask and floral designs at the hems of her robe were contractually white as daylight. For a few minutes, the girl continued to stand beside his body and stared at him in pure silence as if expecting something from him.

"…Are you death?" Natsume asked.

"I'm here in orders of the academy to confirm whether you are alive and whether you successfully retrieved the data we asked you to get." The girl said.

"I…might as well be dead. The data is in…my blazer. Enemy took…the counterfeit…" Natsume said.

The girl kneeled in and unbuttoned his bloody blazer to find a hidden pocket that had a small usb in it. She took it out, and slid it into her black obi.

"Hehe…"

"What's so funny?" asked the girl.

"Hehehe…nothing. Just…kill me." Natsume said as he looked directly at the girl. "You got what you want…finish me… then leave."

The fire caster looked up to the ceiling that was caught in fire, waiting for it to collapse and become one with the flames. His flames. Then the room became black.

* * *

Natsume summarizes his life as a half- emptied glass of water. After his village was burned down to the ground, along with his best friend, Ruka, and his kind father; Aoi, his newly blind little sister, was all he had left. It was soon after that the Academy came by to collect the two siblings in their black limousines with suspicious chauffeurs in black suits.

The young Natsume, age 8, knew fully well who these men were, because his father repetitively tells him that the day will come when Natsume will be taken away. All this time, he believed he would fight back when the Academy sets before his presence and escape with his family.

However, the circumstances has changed.

His sister and he did not have any relatives that could take in two orphans, and although they could escape now, it would be not long till they find them again. Therefore, Natsume agreed to come with the academy and let them do whatever they want to him, in the condition that his sister will be treated well and happy. Therefore, during the last seven years, Natsume had served the Academy to their every whim, because he would do anything for his sister safety.

Natsume summarizes his life as a half-emptied glass of water, because without Aoi, he would just be an empty glass.

* * *

 **At Alice Academy**

The mild sound of cricket's chirps vibrantly in the outskirts of Alice Academy's Northern Forest. Sitting in the midst of darkness under the shadows of their tall trees was the girl with the white mask. Laying upon her lap was a resting Natsume sleeping soundly as she caresses his hair in comfort. To prevent the young fire caster catching a cold, she covers him with her black kimono, making her endure the cold with her thin white kimono undergarments.

She looked down at the boy as he squirms upon her lap to find comfort in his position. Fortunately, he did not woken up, and she sighed in relief that she would not have to experience his fiery attitude at 2 o'clock in the morning.

She was informed of the boy's characteristics beforehand, and was told he possessed similar qualities to his alice. Hot-tempered, ferocious, out of control, overwhelming and fierce. These were traits that people normally would avoid to get away from unnecessary trouble, but not to the girl. Coincidentally, they were qualities that also describe her most important people. Although they were ruthless and relentless under the orders of the academy like Natsume, she knew deep down that they were kind, caring, and cherish towards the people they hold dear. Conceited as she sounds, she knew they love her as much as she loves them, despite how much blood they spilt in between.

The temperature continues to drop as she remains sitting in the dark, and prays when in the world will Persona, her advisor and guardian, will retrieve her. The only warmth she could acquire was the strong body heat emitted from the boy on her lap.

" _It must be because of his alice."_ she thought in slight envy. The girl inherited a power called the Stealing alice from her late mother. It allows her to transform alices as a stone and if she wanted do, insert that alice into another person. At the same time, she also gained the Nullification alice, which deflects any alices that wishes to harm her. Now during this cold circumstance, neither alices would keep her warm.

Out of all her body parts, her hands were the most effected to the cold and they began to shiver. Overpowered by the chilly weather, she could not resist trying to use the boy as a personal heater. As a resort, she carefully placed one of her cold hands to Natsume's cheek, while the other was holding his hands.

" _So warm."_ She thought.

"Did I interrupt you?" said the man behind a tree.

The girl turned her head and glared at the man with the white half-mask intently with a slight killing aura. Although her cat mask it, she scowls at him.

"Persona, I've been in the cold for too long, where in the world were you?" said the girl in frustration. She extended her arm to him as if signaling him to give her something warm.

"I was busy handling other missions that the headmaster wished me to do. I sincerely apologize." he said while removing his black leather jacket and placed it on the girl's shoulders.

Confident with his strength, the man lifted the sleeping Natsume to his shoulders to carry him to his room. Persona extended his arm to assist the girl standing up, and she took it with a hint of delight and gave a smile under her mask.

"Let's go home." she said as she held onto Persona's hand that was strangely warm, despite having the Degrading alice.

* * *

 **Infirmary room**

The morning ray hitting directly at Natsume's eyes was the cause for his disturbed sleep. His red eyes slowly opened to adjust to the bright lights, and stares at the familiar white ceilings of the academy's infirmary to gradually wake himself up peacefully.

However, a flash of blood, a girl in a white cat mask, and a burning ceiling surged through his head and caused him to jolt in surprise and abruptly sat up.

 _"I'm alive?"_ the boy thought.

He started touching his arms and legs to make sure they were not Swiss cheese from the bullets. He also lifted his shirt to make sure his stomach was still intact and touched it to find any falsification. Natsume was surprised not only was he alive, but the injuries he received were all healed completely without leaving a mark. His best bet was that he either was in heaven, or someone with an incredible healing alice treated him.

The scent of rubbing alcohol with a strange mix of laundry detergent was the signature smell of Alice Academy's infirmary, something that Natsume would be very familiar with after he comes back from a mission. He also looked around the room for anything out of the ordinary, but it was just a room practically empty with nothing but a bed and a clock. He looked up at the clock across the room to check what time it was.

" _1:12 pm. It's late, so I won't make it to the afternoon sessions on time."_ Natsume thought.

One of Natsume's duties to the academy was not solely going to missions, but he was to also attend classes like a normal student. According to the Academy's school board, Natsume was still a minor and still needs to be disciplined and educated like any student in the Academy. They believed if he was not taught to be civilized, then he would not be able to control his alice properly and would cause trouble to the school. Therefore, it was mandatory for him to show up to classes, or else he would be severely punished for it. But considering he almost took his life for a mission last night, he deserves an absence for the day.

He stood up from the bed, and walked up to the window to see the bright world that he will never be a part of. According to his view, he calculated that he must be on the 4th floor of the infirmary because the view of the cherry blossom trees right below were not too far, nor were they quite close. The sun rays were perfectly shining against the cherry blossoms, which gave off a mystifying beautiful appeal to it. Natsume couldn't help but take notice on the elementary boys that were hanging underneath the tree. There should have been a session already, so Natsume guess that these boys were ditching. He could see how they were enjoying themselves under the bask of sunlight and smiled at each other's company.

Natsume stared at the boys with silence and sadness, for he started to reminisce the times he had with his best friend, Ruka. He was the only person aside from his family that was never afraid of him. He would always look at him in the eyes with no hesitation, and treated him as an equal. When Natsume revealed Ruka his fire alice, the blonde boy was surprised, but was never horrified. It was because he also had an alice, but not that amazing as Natsume's he said. He possessed the Animal Pheromone alice, which allows animals to be attracted to him and technically commands them to his every bidding. For the first time in his life, Natsume found another alice user he could share his troubles with, and although their level of liability were different, they still considered each other the same.

The creaking noise of his door opening interrupted Natusme's thoughts of memory lane, and glared whoever disturbed his peace and quiet.

"I see you are feeling better, Natsume." said Persona.

Natusme continued to stare at him in disgust as he watches him with that smirk he hated so much. Although Persona is his advisor, he was the man that assigned him missions and punishes him whenever he pleases. Honestly, he could not stand to being in the same room as him, much less breathing the same air. However, there were questions Natsume had in mind that were needed to be answered, and Persona was the man who would give it to him.

"Cut the crap, Persona. Why am I still alive? You and I knew that I would be dead last night, risking my life for that stupid piece of shit you guys were so gung-ho about, but here I am. Living and breathing. On top of that, who was that girl you sent me? Depending on how she just came to steal the data that I risk my ass for and didn't give a damn that I was dying, she seemed like a nice girl. A true keeper." Natsume said with a hint of sarcasm at the end.

"I assure you Natsume, I never doubted that you would make it out alive BECAUSE of that "nice girl" I sent you." Persona said. He walked closer to Natsume, and he looked down on the boys red eyes with an intense aura.

"Without her, you would not be alive right now. You would've been buried in that storage under enemy territory, and we wouldn't lift a finger getting your burnt corpse. Imagine, what would have happened if your sister found out about it? She would surely be devastated that her only brother died somewhere in the outside world, and she would probably beg us to find your remains. In return, we could do whatever we want with her, doesn't that sound fun?"

"You fucking lolicon! She's only 12 years old!" the boy retorted as he gripping down Persona's collar shirt.

"And you were eight." he replied.

"Bastard!" Natsume scowled. He growled at the man with the burning hatred that resided in him for the last seven years.

"Ah hem." A feminine pitched voice was heard outside the infirmary door.

"Pardon me. Natsume, as much as I know how much you loathe me, that is not why I'm here." Persona said as if getting back to business. Natsume was still pissed off, but stayed quiet to hear the news. The girl with the white mask walked before him, which made Natsume have a confused expression.

"What is she..."

"From today onwards, she will be your partner during missions." Persona said. The girl bowed slightly to make his acquaintance.

"W-wait. Partner? Her?" he questioned with confusion and discuss.

"Yes" replied the young girl as she extended her hand. "My name is Shisane, and I hope we'll get along."

Natsume slapped her hands away as he glared at her with the most hatred look in his eyes. "Fuck off. I don't need partner Persona, I can take care of myself. Especially not with this girl." he said.

He then went back to his bed, and covered the white sheets over his body. It was a sign that he no longer wanted to talk, so Persona and Shisane quietly excused themselves out of the room.

* * *

Persona and Shisane continued walking quietly to the student dormitory area, where Shisane will be residing.

"I'm sorry about letting you see that, he can be…a big handful." The man said.

"No, its okay. I didn't really give a good impression the first time we met anyway." She replied. From there, the rest of the walk consists of silence until they were close to the elementary school dorms.

"May I ask a question?" he asked.

"Sure. What is it?"

"Why didn't you transport back to the main base? Whether Natsume was dead or alive, your goal was to retrieve the stolen data from the AAO safe and sound. With your level of power, you could've transported back safely, even with Natsume's carcass. So why were you only able to pass through the gates?"

"It was because… I healed his wounds before we escaped. They were pretty bad, so it took a lot more power than I thought."

"I understand that the healing alice requires a tremendous amount of energy, but with your amount of power, even healing a fatal wound would not dramatically drain your alice that bad."

The masked girl stopped her tracks and stayed quiet as if she was guilty of something. The man felt her concerns, and was worried how she was. He held on to her shoulders, which made the girl look up at him.

"Please. Tell me."

Shisane looked down again, but she held over his hand to ease him.

"Persona. I actually did something I should have never done. But honestly, I don't regret it and it's for one good reason" Shisane said.

"For Youichi-sama." The man replied.

Under her white mask, the girl smiled. She was delighted that Persona, her beloved guardian, always understands her thought process. Only a few people in her life knew her priorities and the reasons of her actions. On most cases, it is always for her brother, Youichi.

"That's right. Anyway, can I see him before I go to my room?" she asked.

"Of course you can." He said with a smile.

* * *

In the elementary third star dormitory lives a young boy named Youichi, laying down in his bed as his guardian, Sergio, reads him a bedtime story. Ever since the boy came the academy, which was two years ago, Sergio never left his side.

Sergio is Persona's twin little brother, and he was sent to the academy as a hostage. Of course, he didn't knew about it until years later when he witnessed his brothers half-dead unconscious body. Although he possesses the same Degrading alice as his twin, it was not on the same level as his. His ability works on small organisms like flowers and small rodents, but not anything big like a human. Therefore, he couldn't contribute to anything extreme like a mission. To show his usefulness to the academy, he takes the job as caretaker for infants with dangerous alices and a substitute teacher for his brother or any teachers that calls in sick.

"Sergio." Youichi said.

"Yes?" he replied.

"When will Onee-chan come back? She said she'll see me tonight."

"I don't know sweetie. Today is a very busy day for her, so I'm not sure you will actually see her. But it's definite that you'll see your sister tomorrow, cause it's gonna be her first day." Cheered the man.

"Yeah, you're right." Youichi replied with a smile. He turned to his sides, and held onto his stuffed rabbit, indicating that he will go to sleep. However, there was a knock on the door.

"Speak of the devil." Sergio said. He stood up and opened the door to see Persona and a little brunette.

"Welcome Mikan-sama. Youichi-sama has been expecting you." Said Sergio.

"Thank you Sergio. I hope my brother didn't caused you any trouble." She replied.

As Youichi heard Mikan's voice, he sprang up from his bed and rushed towards the door.

"Onee-chan!"

"You-chan!" Mikan replied with excitement. She hugged the little boy with a smile on her face, and so was the boy.

"Oh my gosh, you're so big now! It's only been a month, and you've grown so much. I mean, your hands are as big as my palm now. Maybe this is what you call puberty." She said as she started playing patty-cake with the 8 year old.

"Mikan-sama, he's just growing. He's not even in his 'teens' yet." Said Persona.

The masked man felt a tap on his shoulder, and faced Sergio with a sweet smile on his face.

"Glad you're safe and sound." Sergio gave the masked man a firm hug, and Persona did the same. After their long meaningful hug, Sergio noticed the floral kimono, a black wig, and a mask in his brother's arms.

"Is that what I think it is?" he said as he pointed it out.

"Yeah. She wore these earlier before coming here."

Sergio grabbed the kimono and looked at its wonderful details of pink cherry blossoms near the hems of the kimono. He then grabbed the white cat mask with a similar cherry blossom design.

"It's beautiful." Sergio commented with a sad expression.

Persona also saw his sad look, and he understood why. Maybe it was a twin thing, but Persona also didn't like how the kimono was too beautiful for its own good. Their young mistress, Mikan-sama, is among the most powerful alice user in the country, for she had inherited both Nullification and Stealing Alice from her deceased parents. Under the Japanese Alice government, she was their pride and joy, the national treasure. But as much she is beloved by many, she was also feared. Just like her mother, Yuka Azumi, she was considered the 'Grim reaper' upon Alice users. Her job, ordered by the higher ups, were to steal alices from users close to death. Government officials feel like it would be a waste of an alice if it dies along with the user. Therefore, they send Mikan to take it away from them. But despite the user's plea in their death bed, she remains following orders. For Mikan wearing a beautiful kimono that stands out from death is like a slap in the face that a user will never die with their alice. She represents the beautiful and ugly truth for Alice users, just like her mother.

Amidst in the middle of their thoughts, Mikan asked Persona if she could sleep with Youichi tonight. The mask man was ready to object because her uniform was ready in her room, but Sergio interrupted him, saying that tonight was fine, because she could just teleport back to her room on time.

Mikan agreed with that idea and promised to Persona that she will be awake to teleport back on time to prepare for school.

End of Chapter 1


	2. Bring it On

Chapter 2: Bring it On

The young fire caster shot up from his sleep with a cold sweat, breathing heavily in hopes that his rapid heartbeat would slow down. He just had a nightmare of that day with the fire outburst and how the roof from that storage was about to collapse on him. Shisane was right beside him, just watching him as he slowly dies either from blood loss or being engulfed from the flames. Then everything turned black, and he woke up.

He looked at his window, and based how dark it was outside, it was either the middle of the night or early morning. Natsume looked at his digital clock next to him to justify his deduction, and it said 6:38 am.

He had about an hour more sleep before preparing to going to school, but having a recollected memory of a life-death incident wouldn't make anyone go back to sleep. Natsume combed his hair back in frustration, and he felt disgusted from it's thin, oily texture. It was understandable, since he didn't shower for almost a week.

"Guess I'll take a shower" he said to himself.

* * *

 _In the elementary school dormitory, a young brunette was sleeping soundly with her little brother in her arms. However, as the sun was setting, Mikan's internal clock turned off and gradually woke up from her slumber._

 _After a few minutes, she stretched out her arms in delight and commented how the bed was so soft. She then gazed at the little boy lovingly and stroked his silver hair. Mikan silently got off the bed and then teleported to her room._

 _In a blink of an eye, she was transported back to her four star room in the high school dormitory. As the national treasure, the government would have automatically given her a comfortable place to reside in for the rest of her life, but she honestly could care less what room they gave her. Whether it was a third star room or maybe a no star room, it didn't matter, as long she had a roof over her head and knowing that Youichi was doing fine._

 _She looked at her antique clock located near her bed, and it said 6:40 am. Class starts at 8:00 am, so Mikan has about an hour to prepare for her first day of school._

 _"Guess I'll go take a_ shower _" she said to herself._

* * *

The heat from the shower made Natsume calm and relax. Ironically, getting a hot shower cools his mind, and lets him think rationally about things that happened to him. For instance, he understands that the girl Persona proclaims to save him is someone that he never met before. During his seven years working underground, he never encountered a girl name Shisane, and she was somebody that could stand out from a crowd. Also, he was trying to assemble what happened on the night of the fire, where he could have sworn that he was dead. To add onto the list, Natsume notices that there weren't any scars in his body. From previous experiences of severe injuries, no matter how good the hospital medicines were or how strong healing alice users were, they would always leave a scar. In this matter, the boy couldn't find a scar anywhere, even his previous missions.

Natsume believes that the girl in question was really powerful. With her strange aura, the level of her healing alice, and Persona strange behavior towards her, he felt that she was a force that he can't reckon with. He even wonders if she was someone from the top, but Natsume can't figure out any reasons why she would work for the academy. Based on all these facts that he gathered, Natsume concluded to one thing, he can't trust her.

Sure she saved his ass, but she almost left him for dead. Natsume felt that she may have disobeyed orders this time, but she wouldn't make that mistake twice. He felt if they told her to kill him, he knows she would, which was why it was so ridiculous Persona pairing each other up. To the fire caster, she was a ticking time bomb ready to explode.

He turned off his shower cap and wrapped his blue towel around his waist. He wiped the fog from the mirror, and saw his reflection. He looked extremely tired, and his eye bags and unhealthy pale complexion could mistaken him as ghost.

"I look like shit." he remarked.

* * *

 _Mikan finished her shower and was extremely refreshed from the hot water mixed with aroma therapeutic soaps Sergio gave her. As she dried her hair with her towel, she noticed her uniform laid across her bed. The brunette believed that Persona entered her room while she was showering and prepared everything from neatly organizing her uniform to sunny-side up and bread in a plate on her table. No matter how many years the man had raised Mikan, she was sometimes curious on how Persona knows she was awake._

 _Mikan stared intently on her uniform before her. Throughout her 15 years, she never attended a school, not even a pre-school, because the higher ups believed she would be prone_ as _a danger to other young_ alice _users. As her source of education, she was home schooled by a tutor hired by the government._

 _She was mesmerized how professional her blazer looked with the complementary yellow-checkered skirt. It's adorable she thought, and couldn't wait to try it on._

 _Mikan went back to the bathroom to brush and blow dry her semi-wet hair to gain that silky amber locks that she was lucky to have. Unfortunately, the government and the academy thought otherwise. She was the spitting image of her mother, Yuka Azumi, the nation's most beloved treasure, as well as the nation's greatest regret. Her betrayal to side with the AAO left a deep scar that could not be easily mended. Even when they killed her off to atone for her sins, they still wanted a way to make Yuka suffer even in the afterlife. Not too long after, they discovered she had daughte_ r _, who also possessed the cursed stealing_ _alice. Mikan guessed that as a way for them to laugh at her mom in heaven, they would use her the same way as they did with Yuka. A dog._

 _When she finally finished priming her hair into a half bun, she went back to her room to finally dress into her uniform. Mikan looked at herself in the full-body mirror placed next to her bed. Her eyes twinkled in astonishment that the uniform had made her looked cute and professional at the same time. The young girl often wondered why some of the weird people she encountered during her missions have a uniform fetish, but she now understand the appeal of it all._

 _The last finishing touches every girl must do to begin the day would be makeup. Sergio, Persona's twin brother, once told her that women are privileged to have the finest things in life, including a simple lipstick._ So on _Mikan's fifteenth birthday, Persona and Sergio bought her a white vanity table filled with_ variety _of Maybelline cosmetics and brushes. It was beautiful, and Mikan was so grateful to have these lovely people to be part of her life. If not, she would have become like Natsume Hyuuga._

 _Mikan first applied BB cream on her face to tone her facial coloration as well as mildly cover her dark circles. Then she applied a layer of foundation on spots that were unappealing, such as her dark circles, and add a bit of pink blush on her_ cheek bones _. She wanted to have a simple style that was appropriate for a school setting, so she only used black liquid eyeliner and mascara to contour her eyes. Finally, she used chapstick to enhance her lips natural pink color to accommodate the simple style._

 _The girl was proud of what she had done, and Sergio would be utterly proud of her that she was able to accomplish this by herself. Mikan stared at herself in the mirror for a couple of minutes and turned her head in every angle to admire how beautiful she looked. But the more she stares into the mirror, the more anxious she gets. The girl she see's was a normal high school girl who probably has a mother and father that raised her since she was born. Her life consists of going to school with friends and_ hangout _with them after classes to watch a movie. When she gets home, she would be welcomed with open arms and have a family dinner. After that, she would sleep with sweet dreams, and her day would_ start _over again. This girl with a bright life was the exact opposite of Mikan, yet she has to play this role to blend in with the students._

 _She started to have a bit of a_ breakdown, _because she was anxious that everyone will see through her lies and completely reject her. If Mikan were to fail on this mission, then_ Youichi _,_ Sergio _and Persona would be punished for her incompetence. Her head started to feel heavy from these negative thoughts, so she wobbled back to her bed to rest. She deducted that she was probably still tired, so she'll wake up 30 minutes before class starts._

* * *

Natsume checked the time and found that it was 7:25 am. He was already dressed into his uniform: a black blazer with an unbuttoned polo shirt, a loose yellow tie and fitted yellow pleated pants. To his opinion, this uniform was just the ugliest thing he has ever seen. Out of all the colors, he wondered why barfing yellow? The academy could've picked green to contrast both the red uniform and the blue uniform from the Elementary and Middle School department respectively. Hell, if they wanted them to be college/career ready by the time they graduate; we might as well wear business suits instead. Then again, that doesn't apply to Natsume at all.

When his classmates graduate, it will be the happiest time of their lives. They will finally be out of the academy and best of all, they'll return to the people that love them. But for Natusme and the rest of the dangerous ability class, he won't have that luxury to graduate away from the school, nor does he think he'll survive past twenty. In addition of having the most dangerous alice, he also has the type that drains his lifespan the more he uses his abilities. To his surprise, it was amazing that he was still able to reach high school despite all those missions that required much of his flames. He felt at any moment, he will die.

As if ruining this serious mood, the boy's stomach suddenly growled. Natsume remembered he didn't have a proper dinner last night because they called him up so suddenly. So the only thing that he ate was a piece of toast with a smear of butter and some protein pills in the limousine on the way to the location.

Natsume locked his room and left towards the directions to the elevator. Luckily he did not see anyone coming out of their rooms, or else it would be a bother having prying eyes loom over the boy early in the morning. As he was about to turn a corner, he noticed that there was a white door that was slightly opened. It was rather strange for him because he have always known that that particular room was always uninhibited, so seeing it open felt weird. But if there really was a student occupying there, leaving the door open will cause students to peek into it or steal something from there. Natsume was about to close the door until he heard a name that caught his attention.

"Persona…" said a girl with a soft voice.

He instantly stopped from the sound of that name. As if paralyzed, he just stood in front of the door, feeling nothing but the beating of his heart.

"What's wrong? Do you not feel well?" the masked man asked in a gentle tone.

Natusme slowly leaned forward to peek into the door as swiftly as he could. Despite his heart beating rapidly, he held his breath so he wouldn't be discovered by the girl and importantly his advisor. From his view, he sees Persona sitting on the edge of the bed and his back was facing the door. He also saw that there was a girl that seems to be lying her head on Persona's lap, and he was stroking her hair. Natsume doesn't know what this girl looks like, but she was wearing a high school division uniform, which indicates that she's either from his class or she was older than him. Either way, Natsume believes he was hearing an unbelievable scene that he can't miss.

"I'm just freaking out about school. I mean, what if none of my classmates don't like me? They'll probably talk about trends that I don't even know, or maybe famous celebrities that I probably never heard of. Oh my god, they might even ask me for my phone number, but I don't have a phone!" the girl said in despair.

"You should calm down Mika…"

"Oh, I'm a disgraceful millennial child! I never even heard of YouTube until last week when Sergio showed me videos of Make-up tutorials on his tablet! I'm such a fake. I should die. I would do a favor to the rest of the world if I didn't exist." She bellowed.

The girl felt a strong tug on her hair that made her yelp in pain.

"Hey, that hurts you know." She said as she rubbed the place it was tugged.

"Exactly my point. So please, don't ever say that again." Persona responded with a hint of sadness.

"Persona…"

Just then, she was interrupted by the sound of the door creaking. Surprised by the sudden creak from the door, Natsume utilized his amazing skill to erase his presence. He can't be caught now, not when he discovered Persona's weakness.

"Persona, you should have closed the door when you entered. What if someone was peeking in? Like, it's not hard to find my room since I'm at the corner near the elevator. Practically anyone can find me if they needed to" said the girl.

Natsume heard her getting up from the bed, and pushed the door shut.

The fire caster immediately left his spot to the elevator, and continuously pushed the "Door closed" button as soon as he entered. Part of him was being paranoid that Persona knew that he was listening outside, and he'll definitely kill him if he caught him. The elevator doors finally closed, and the fire caster sighed in relief.

"That was close".

* * *

 _After Mikan shut the door, Persona slammed his hand against it. She looked up at his intense black eyes, and she knew instantly what will happen next._

 _"P-Persona not now..." Mikan said with nervousness as she tried to push him away._

 _But the man didn't get her_ message, _and kissed her so passionately on the lips. Mikan could feel his tongue sliding into her mouth, making her moan as he touched her chest. Her legs started to become weak and her face was red as a tomato. As Persona parted from their kiss, Mikan stared at the trail of saliva between them._

 _He stared at Mikan's brown eyes with passion and called out her name._

 _"Mikan-_ sama _"_

 _"Y-yes Persona?" She replied with obvious fluster in her face._

 _"I know you're nervous about the other kids, but I also know that you'll be just fine. I swear, once they get to know you as much as me, Sergio, and Youichi_ do _, they'll love you in no time. So I'll be at the office ahead of you, okay? I need to talk to Narumi about something." He then gave the girl a pat in the shoulder, and left the room so fast that Mikan wasn't able to recover what just happened._

 _The brunette fell to the floor and reflected on that surprise attack. Well actually, it wasn't a surprise at all because it happened before_ in _more than one occasion. Persona never admitted it yet, but Mikan already knows why he does these things to her._

 _He's in love with her._

 _Nevertheless, Persona was right. She was about to be late for her first day of school and she wouldn't want to give her classmates a wrong impression. So she stood up, grabbed her bag and locked the room._

 _ **Faculty Room**_

 _For years, Mikan_ have _encountered many dangerous situations from her missions. Such as sneak-attacking the mafia family that caused trouble for the Academy some years back. Or that time on her first mission where she barely made it out alive after some psycho_ alice _-user got out of prison. But for some strange reason, she was sensing the same danger behind the doors of the Faculty Room. In a_ worst case _scenario,_ everyone _of the staff members_ were _probably_ killed of _an SSO agent. However, it was different._

 _She felt chins down her spine, and her instincts were acting up. But as Persona had told her before, 'Go trust your instincts'. She took a deep_ breath, _and opened the sliding doors to witness a rare scene._

 _Before her was a beautiful blonde that wrapped_ around _their arms around her man-servant, Persona. What was funny was that for the very first time, she had witnessed him in an uncomfortable situation, flustered in front of this persons hold._

 _Persona, a man with the image of calmness and mystery. A person with rational thought and dominance. To Mikan, she is witnessing someone dominating him besides herself. One would think she would react to be shocked and jealous, but she unexpectedly felt it was surprising, and extremely amusing._

 _Anyway, it looked like that this person was about to kiss him, which was extra funny because of what happened a few minutes ago in her room._

 _"M-Mikan-_ sama _, this isn't..."_

 _"Oh, so you're the Mikan-_ sama _that I've been hearing about" the blonde man interrupted. "My name is Narumi, and I'll be your homeroom teacher. I use to belong to the elementary division, but I recently been assigned to become a high school teacher now. It's a pleasure to meet you." He said with excitement and pulled out his hand._

 _Mikan stared at the man's hand for a while, then looked up at the man's face, who was smiling and waiting patiently for her to shake his hand._

 _"Nice to meet you too." The brunette said, as well as taking out her hand for a friendly shake._

* * *

 **Classroom B**

The room was bustled with laughing young high schoolers as they gather around into their respectable group of friends. Most of these students have already known each other from elementary school, but as they gradually get to know themselves, they started to learn that the best way to survive everyday life would to interact people that are similar to them. Such as the smart students would only stay and interact with their fellow intelligent friends. Another example would be that the popular girls only hang with other popular girls, who held a high star status or belonged to a famous family. Lastly, we have the delinquents that think twice about the school and often skip their classes to hang out somewhere else. But today was especially loud.

"Hey, have you heard that there's gonna be a new student coming in?" Said a girl towards a young woman with curly black hair and green eyes.

"I doubt that. There's rarely any incidents that the academy found an Alice who is late in their time. At most, she would probably be a middle schooler and she was mistakenly placed here" replied a girl named Shouda Sumire. She's a beautiful girl that is associated with the popular crowd, as well as being the President of the Natsume Hyuuga Fan Club 7 years in a row.

"But I talked to Iinchou about it, and he already clarified that we'll have a new kid" retorted the girl.

Sumire stood up from her seat, and approached a cheerful young man with blonde hair and round glasses. His name was Tobita Yuu, a boy that received respect from his peers since elementary. With his intelligence, positive attitude and great sense of responsibility, he was given the role as class president throughout these years.

"Iinchou" Sumire said.

"Yes, Shouda-san?" He asked with a puzzled look.

She crossed her arms and asked, "Is it true that we're getting a new student today?"

"That is correct. Narumi-sensei told me about it yesterday afternoon."

"Is it a boy or a girl?" Sumire asked with a sound of contempt when she said girl.

"I believe he told me it was a girl" Iinchou replied.

Sumire furrowed her eyebrows and turned her back on him as she walked away to her group. She was obviously not happy about this news at all. A few years back, there was also a new girl who transferred into the same class as Sumire and Natsume named Koizumi Luna. With her delicate features, Sumire wanted to befriend her to be part of her minions. However, Luna ended up partnering with Natsume for that year. Rumors said that they were going out secretly, and Luna was able to gain popularity from the hearsay. Thankfully she's not part of their class anymore, but it was the most traumatic time for Sumire.

The back door opened, and Natsume finally came in. He quietly sat down at his seat located at the back of the room, which was also where Sumire's group also resided.

"Good morning, Natsume-kun" the girl greeted cheerfully as soon she saw the fire-caster stepped into the room. He ignored her greeting, and pulled out his manga. Sumire believed that this was a normal conversation with the fire boy, little does she know that he was pondering over Persona's strange behavior earlier.

Narumi, one of the teachers that Natsume doesn't trust, finally entered the room with the usual smile he always used every morning.

"Everyone get to your seats now" he chimed.

Everyone quickly sat in their designated seats, while Natusme glared at the blonde man with disgust. His chippy attitude always irritates him, because under that smile was a heartless cold-blooded killer like him. Narumi once explained to him he was different from his past, but he didn't believed it one bit.

"I have two announcements. First of all, I won't be able to teach English today because of the headmaster called me in for god knows what. So you'll have a substitute later. On our second matter, and I think you guys probably know about it, we have a new student today!"

The class started to get noisy with the announcement being true.

"She's really cute, and I hope that y'all get along with her. It took us a long time to find her because she has the type of alice that was hard to detect." There was ore muttering in the class, wondering what type of alice the new girl has.

"Without further ado, I'd like to you meet your new classmate. You could come in now" commanded Narumi.

* * *

 _"Good morning everyone. My name is Mikan Sakura, and I have the Nullification_ alice _. Please take care of me." Mikan bowed, and lifted back up with_ cute _smile that would swoon any boy. The boys started to blush after her introduction and muttered between one another. Even the Yuu Tobita, the class president, blushed at the sight of the brunette. Most of the girls in the class were also commenting how pretty she was and added more thoughts that she seemed the approachable type._

 _Mikan analyzed her classroom and stood there with nervousness. Seeing her classmates with flustered and exciting faces made her uncomfortable, as well as thinking theywere_ _probably laughing at her._

 _'Narumi-sensei told me I should smile when I introduce myself. He guaranteed that it would make me have friends. But I'm starting to think it backlashed' the brunette thought._

 _"Mikan-chan you'll have a totally great time here in Alice Academy. If you work hard and do well on your assignments, then you'll be fine. Now then, I already assigned you a partner and a seatmate. They'll be the ones taking care of you and showing you the way how the school works" Narumi said. Mikan nodded, anticipating who will be her partner._

 _She hoped it was a girl, that way she can potentially have her first normal gal pal. Someone who talks about_ boys, _goes shopping whatever they want to, or maybe even..._

 _"Your partner will be Natsume Hyuuga for the rest of the year."_

 _...get killed by the black cat himself._

 _It wasn't just Mikan who was shocked about this arrangement, but so was the whole class._

 _"Narumi-sensei, this is outrageous! It's been 3 years since Natsume had a partner, and I don't see how this girl qualifies for it." Shot up a girl with green curly hair. Mikan looked back at Narumi-sensei with begging eyes to reconsider the position. Whoever this girl was, the Nullifier agreed with her 100%. It's bad enough she has Natsume for missions, but in her school life as well? Mikan instantly thought that the government is_ really _ought to get her miserable ass._

 _"Now, now don't complain about my choice in partners. As a person with a pheromone alice, I'm known to be a great matchmaker." Narumi explained. Mikan mentally slapped her forehead._

 _"Listen kids, what's done is done and I can't change that. As your knowledgeable sensei, I expect you all to respect my decisions. Or else" The room went instantly silent. Mikan felt a bit of tension between her classmates and Narumi, which add up to her anxiety building up._

 _"Well then Mikan-chan, your seat is right next to Natsume-_ kun _at the back. Try not to trip while you're at it." Narumi tapped on her shoulder for reassurance and quickly left the room to avoid further glares from his students._

 _The girl walked towards her assigned seat at the back, where Natsume Hyuuga_ _stares at her intently on her way there. Mikan stared back at him with the same intensity, for she knows the boy will not be kind to her at all. But she needed to act like a normal high-schooler until her mission was over._

 _The brunette was too focused in her thoughts that she didn't notice a foot out, and she tripped. Luckily she was able to catch herself, so she saved the utter embarrassment to fall on her face._

 _"New girl, watch your step"chuckled a girl with black hair. She was sitting right next to the girl that objected Mikan to partner with Natsume earlier._

 _"L-likewise" she responded in the midst of confusion. Mikan continued to walk towards her seat. When she finally sat next to Natsume, he stared at her and smirked. This made Mikan extra anxious, wondering if he knows about her identity as Shisane. But whatever gets in her way, whatever hell he puts her through, she can handle it._

 _His face came closer to her ear and whispered, "I'm gonna eat you out alive, new girl"._

 _Mikan was certainly surprised from his comment, but she smirked at him as well._

 _"Bring it on"_

End of Chapter 2


	3. Central Town

Chapter 3: Central Town

In front of Natsume was a beautiful girl that he had ever seen. She was as pale as a porcelain doll and had flowy brunette hair. Her gazing eyes were as sweet as chocolate and her presence could warm up the room. Her aura oozes with feigned innocence, she was no doubt part of a world that was opposite to his. But like every beautiful rose, they all have their thorns.

This new girl was highly suspicious. No one, not even the academy would take in any student in the middle of a semester. To add to that, the Academy has a flawless system to find other Alices. If she said about her Nullification powers was true, then maybe our system would not have found her as they said. Maybe that was also why they assigned her to be his partner, where she's the only one in the whole school that couldn't get hurt by his flames. Then maybe she was purposely assigned to him to keep an eye on him, which was stupid because there was nothing he could be doing.

Natsume was also wondering if she was the girl that was with Persona. If she was, he could understand why he would keep her away. She seems too innocent, and a very easy target to manipulate. This girl was probably blindly manipulated by that bastard right now. There would be a chance that this girl would be that bitch from last night, but Natsume highly doubts that. He doesn't feel the murderous contempt from her, but he can't be too sure.

"Bring it on" she says.

It was a clue that she knew him beforehand, so it depends if Persona told her about him or someone else did. I mean, he's pretty well-known around the school so who doesn't know his name?

"Hey, New Girl" said Curly as she stood in front of their desk. She glares at her with such hatred and intensity that seems to make the new girl nervous.

"Um, my name is Sakura Mikan" she said.

"I don't care. Listen new girl, I have a two rules if you want to us to get along. Rule 1: Although I can't convince Narumi-sensei with this partnership, you will pretend that you're not partnered with him at all. Instead, partner with Iinchou." She then pointed at our class president, who was surprised by this arrangement.

"Rule 2: Everybody in this class knows that Natsume is my man, so stay away from him. Capeesh?"

"Oi, Curly. When in the world did I became your man?" Natsume interrupted. "The last time I checked, I don't belong to anyone."

"Oh Natsume-kun, I know that in time you'll come around" Sumire smiled.

For as long as he could remember, Sumire always tells people that he was her boyfriend. Natsume didn't mind at first, until Koizumi Luna became his partner. Since then, Sumire was more aggressive about her disillusioned claim over him, and it had gotten really annoying.

"Fuck you Curly. You are not my girlfriendw." He retorted and left his seat.

"N-Natsume-kun, where are you going?" Sumire asked.

"Anywhere but here". The fire boy opened the door, and before he stepped out, Youichi was there.

"Onii-chan" Youichi said.

"Youichi, what are you doing here?" Natsume asked.

"I heard that Onee-chan was in your class, so I came to visit".

"Onee-chan?" Natsume questioned. He expected answers from the little boy that he adores, but he already entered into the classroom before he could say anything.

"Onee-chan!" Yelled the boy to the young brunette.

"You-chan? Aren't you suppose to have class today?" Asked the girl.

"Yeah, but I ditched school so I could visit you. Aren't you happy to see me?" He asked as he sat next to Mikan.

"Of course I'm happy to see you. But you're suppose to stay in class until I pick you up later."

"So, does that mean you don't want me here?" Youichi asked with teary eyes. His puppy face made the girl struggle over her will, because she could never refuse the cute boy.

"sigh. You-chan, I'm really happy you're here to see me, but I don't want you to get behind your studies. Education is a privilege a child could have, so I'll only let you off for today. Tomorrow you'll stay in class, or else you'll be in a lot of trouble mister." Scolded the girl. The just young boy nodded in response.

Natsume was certainly surprised that Youichi, an expressionless child that had a hard time opening up to people, is obediently listening to someone other than himself. He had known Youichi for two years, ever since he was put into the Dangerous Ability class. He remembered that he was always accompanied by a man with a pony-tail, and he would never leave his side. But whenever he would leave the boy when we start our meetings, Youichi would always cry for the man's return. The other dangerous ability members were often annoyed by this constant routine, so sometimes they would threaten to kill him to shut him up. Persona tries to attempt to comfort Youichi, but it seems like this sorry excuse of an adult doesn't know how to handle a toddler. Therefore, Natsume took it upon himself that he will take care of him when it's necessary. From then on, Youichi had secured a deep attachment to the fire-boy.

Youichi would ditch class to see Natsume. Often it was once a week, other times were twice a week. But there was a reason why he visits Natsume, even though the High School Building was on the other side of the academy. It was because Youichi has been neglected by his classmates; they were afraid of his Spirit Alice cause they believed they would be possessed. He didn't make a single a companion in his classroom, so he goes to Natsume in times he's ever lonely. But that seems to all change, now that Youichi seems to like the new girl.

"Hi there Youichi-kun, did you come here today to play again?" Asked the Curly girl as she knelt down to Youichi's level.

The young lad ignored the girl, and continued giving his full attention to the brunette. Mikan didn't mind her brothers affection, but the glares were making her uncomfortable.

"I don't get it, it took me two years to make him like me enough to stay in the same room. But you showed up just a minute ago, and he already touchy-feely with you? What's your relationship with him, New Girl?" demanded Sumire.

"If you really want to know who I am ..." Mikan said, with the emphasis of her saying Permy. She stood up facing the girl with an annoyed look.

"I'm his sister. Got a problem with that, Permy?"

"P-Permy? Who the fuck are you calling a Permy huh? My name is Shouda Sumire, the most popular girl in our class. I was trying to be nice to you cause you're new, but I'm guessing your not worth the treatment, New Girl" she said.

"Stop calling me 'New girl'! I have a name you know, a simple name that even your tiny little brain could remember. My name is Sakura Mikan, Sakura! Like I swear to God, it is the most generic Japanese surname you could ever think of" the brunette retorted.

The students started to whisper among themselves, making Mikan confused at the moment.

"Okay, Sakura. But let me ask you this. If your name really is Sakura, then why is You-chan's surname Hijiri?"

Mikan was speechless. She can't possibly admit that Youichi wasn't her brother related by blood and her thoughts were in disarray. This wasn't how she wanted to start her high school life. If this continues to get out of hand, she would fail the mission and everything she worked for will go to waste.

"I'm waiting, Sakura-san". Sumire said.

If this was a normal mission, it would've been easy obliterating everyone. At this moment, Mikan really wants to obliterate Sumire in particular. The brunette continues to not say anything, which caused the class to spout words of doubts. Luckily, Youichi broke the silence.

"I'm adopted." He said. The class were shocked, including Mikan.

"My original family weren't able to take care of me because of my alice, so I was adopted into the Sakura family since they were the only alice family in my hometown. We thought Onee-chan was exceptionally normal, but she actually has an Alice like mother and father. It was my decision that I still keep my Hijiri name, so don't assume that my Onee-chan is a total stranger" Youichi said.

Everyone murmured amongst each other, and even Sumire seemed defeated about this fact.

"It must be true if You-chan says so" whispered a girl.

"Yeah. Poor boy"replied another. His story made his classmates, including Natsume pity the boy because of his past.

Mikan, on the other hand, couldn't believe how Youichi was a great liar.

 _'Adopted my ass'_ she thought.

But she couldn't say that, nor can she say that she and Youichi were siblings in a blood pact.

* * *

Mikan, who was 12 years old at the time, was primarily raised by a pair of twins, Sergio and Persona. Although her loving uncle, Yukihara Kazumi, was her only blood relative, he did not have the time to look after her. Being a high school principal and an Alice tracker apparently takes up most of a man's time. But whenever he does get his vacations, he used it to totally spoil his niece. Those special moments happens twice a year, which is Christmas and the anniversary of her father's death.

The brunette fully understands her uncles circumstances, and doesn't mind being with Sergio and Persona. However, the girl secretly yearns for a family, maybe even a sibling.

One day, as if God answered her prayers, Sergio was assigned to take care of a 6 year old boy.

"Mikan-sama, meet Youichi-sama. I know this is sudden, but I was told to care for this child from now on. Oh, but that doesn't mean I'll stop playing with you. I'll also see you whenever Persona is out, which will start tomorrow. He told me he'll be out for a month, so you and Youichi-sama will have enough time to know each other" Sergio said.

Mikan knelt down to face the boy hiding behind Sergio.

"Hello Youichi, my name is Mikan. We'll be seeing each other a lot from now on, so I hope we can get along." She said as she pulled out her hand for a handshake.

The boy stared at it, then gradually shook her hand as well.

From then on, Mikan always comes to Youichi's room after her trainings. She would always play with him and occasionally sleepover. During those hangouts, Youichi tells her how he feels isolated from his classmates, cause 1st grade is hard he said. Luckily, there was a guy who was a few years older that plays with him. Youichi said it was comfortable being with him, like having an onii-chan.

"...I miss my Onii-chan at home. I miss my Mama, and Papa too. I wish I could go back one day" Youichi said.

Mikan looked like him, amazed that he wasn't crying at all. But that doesn't mean he's sad about it. She took hold of his hand, and told him her deepest desire.

"Can you keep this a secret?" Mikan asked. The little boy nodded.

"I'm jealous of you You-chan. You have a home you belong to. A mother, a father, a brother. They all loved you, and you were sent here for your well-being. But me, I don't have that. Both my parents died, my uncle is always working, the twins took care of me cause they were told to..." Mikan paused.

"I love everyone... but I always wanted a family. Heck, I would even kill for a brother or sister...pun intended of course" she said. Her and Youichi had a moment of silence, absorbing in Mikan's confession.

Then, the little boy suddenly stood up.

"Mikan, there is a way for us to be a family" he said with a stern look.

"Really? How?" She asked.

"One of my spirits told me that in his past life, he did a thing called a blood pact with his best friend. He said that even though they were not related at all, a blood pact was a ritual that made them brothers for life. I think that concept could apply to us too"

Mikan was highly interested with this topic, but she shook her head.

"No, You-chan. I appreciate what you're doing, but this could be dangerous for you. Persona told me that you can't exchange blood willy-nilly, because who knows if it contains STDs or some other diseases. I do not want that kind of risk for a 6 year old boy" Mikan said.

Youichi grab hold of the brunettes hand tightly and looked deeply into her hazel eyes.

"Mikan..."

"Y-yes?"

"Please let me do this for you." He gripped on her hand tighter. "From the moment I shook your hand, my chest started hurting. Like, I felt that my heart wouldn't stop beating and I felt that I was gonna die any moment. Mikan, the more I hung out with you, the more I knew that I wanted to be someone special to you. And if making me your brother will do that, so be it" he said.

The brunette looked at him in disbelief. She's not the most experienced girl in the world, but it sounded more like a confession of love than a friendship love. I mean, if they became blood-siblings, wouldn't it just cause trouble for him in the future if he wanted more than that? But then again, he was only 6 years old. His feelings towards her will change over time.

She looked at him again, seeing that he was confident with his decision. Mikan would be smart enough to refuse his offer, but her irrational desire for a family was overpowering.

"Alright, lets do it"

* * *

 **Central Town**

One thing led to another in just 30 minutes. After Youichi's believable lie about him being adopted, Sumire and the others chilled out. Natsume was still going to ditch class, so Youichi wanted to follow him. As for Mikan, she was following Youichi because she was worried something bad would happen to her brother. As a result, they were off to go to Central Town.

The ride was silent. While Mikan was holding Youichi on her lap and looked out the window to check out the shopping district, Natsume listened to his iPod with his hands in his pockets.

"Onee-chan, have you tried Howalons before?" Asked the boy

"Howalons?"

"They're similar to cotton candy, but are more fluffier and they melt in your mouth" he explained.

"Oh yeah, I think Sergio gave me some before. They were really good, and I always wanted to buy some more" she said. The little boy's eyes sparkled in excitement with a grin, then looked again at the window while moving his legs. Mikan chuckled at his cute behavior. From the years she has known him, they never did go anywhere outside the dormitories. This was the first time that was normal, and she hoped she get to feel this way more often.

The brunette felt eyes were gazing at her and looked at Natsume, since he's the only other person in the bus. He was still looking out the window, so she reverted back her attention to her brother. Little does she knows, his face was beet red.

* * *

 **Persona's Room**

The masked man was on the phone, patiently waiting for someone to answer it.

"Imai Hospital, how may I help you?" Answered a high pitched female. Persona believed that it was probably a new nurse, since all the nurses he knows that worked there for years do not sound this young.

"Yes, I want to know how a patient is doing?"

"Which patient are you talking about, and may I know who this is before I give out any information?" Asked the nurse.

"My name is Persona, and I believe you know which patient I'm talking about" he said.

The nurse went silent. The masked man waited for her reply.

This was common for nurses that were new to the Imai Hospital. The public do not know this, but Imai Hospital are secretly financed by the government because the Head Doctor, Imai Subaru, has an impeccable healing alice that could treat any illness. Rumor has it that he's powerful enough to cure cancer, but he could only treat government leaders and powerful alice users. By powerful alice users, they meant alice's that the country could not afford to lose.

But what is Mikan's purpose then? If they die, shouldn't it be Mikan's job to transfer the alice to another compatible host? Unfortunately, some alice's that are truly one of a kind can never find a compatible host. As a result, they would die from the insertion and the alice will never be used by anyone. Most often, these special alices belong to the Dangerous ability class. Persona, being the head of the group, was infamous enough that new nurses must look out for.

"If you are talking about patient 001, you are in luck! She just woke up" said the nurse.

"What? Are you sure?" Asked the masked man in disbelief.

" I am totally positive about it. She is eating her breakfast as we speak, and she is scheduled to undergo rehabilitation tomorrow" the nurse explained. She heard the man from the line sighed in relief, which made her feel happy that this infamous murderous man cared about this patient.

"Thank you for the information. I will visit tomorrow to check on her progress" he said.

Then he hung up.

* * *

 **Central Town**

Howalons are popular among Alice students, which is why they are sold out soon as school ended. Mikan was able to get two boxes with no problem, but she feels the judgment from the cashier. It was only her first day, and she already skipped school. Everyone she encountered already deemed her as a delinquent and she's already worried how she'll interact with her classmates. Especially that Shouda person.

Youichi and Natsume were off somewhere, so they told Mikan to meet up at the fountain in an hour. It took 10 minutes for the brunette to find the Howalon shop and ordered two boxes. One for Youichi and Mikan to share, while the other one was for Natsume. Although she's still uncomfortable around him, she still can't help be thankful for his friendship with her brother.

She had 40 minutes left to spare, so what else could she do? She roamed across the nearest stores to kill the time. She checked out a bookstore, browsing through fashion magazines where Sergio gain knowledge about fashion trends. Then she went to the clothing store to find ensembles that the magazines talked about. Then she hopped over to the toy store to find toys that her brother would like, but realized that she doesn't know what little boys are into these days.

Mikan exited out of the toy store and sighed in exhaustion. She had already killed 25 minutes, and there weren't any stores that she could think of going. So she thought of going back.

As she was walking back to the fountain, she stumbled upon Ruby earrings displayed on a window. It was a jewelry store called "Alice Jewels", and she was wondering if they were selling alice stones.

Alice stones are stones that not only harbors an alice, but its color and size indicates the users personality, as well as power level. In other words, alice stones shows the users identity, which is sometimes illegal to sell based on privacy violations. Nevertheless Sergio told her that in the academy, there was an event that exchange of alice stones meant a proposal for marriage. Alice stones represents the very being of a user and their strong feelings, so giving it to somebody else means that they trust the other person wholeheartedly with their life.

That being said about stones represents their owners, the ruby earrings shown on the display reminded her of Natsume eyes. When she first met him on the day of the fire, she was entranced by the spark in them. On the verge of death, he never seized to stop his willpower to live, because there was someone in his life that was worth living for. That was why Mikan saved his life, because he was important to someone.

When she met him again at the hospital and the classroom, his eyes continued to shine bright with his fiery spirit, which Mikan secretly adores.

"If only I could be like him" she said to herself.

So she entered the store, and purchased the ruby earrings. She also bought a bracelet, a necklace and another earring as gifts.

* * *

 **Central Town Fountain**

Mikan spotted the little boy, and behind him was Natsume carrying two small bags.

"You-chan, welcome back. Did you get what you wanted to buy?" She asked.

"mmhmm" he replied. He raised his arms to her, indicating that he wanted to be carried. And as soon she picked him up safely into her arms, he fell asleep.

"You-chan? You-chan, are you alright?" Asked the girl.

"He's fine. He's just knocked out." Natsume replied bluntly.

"Is that so? What did you do to make him this tired? Anyway, Natsume do you want some Howalons?" Mikan asked.

He stared at her intently and he asked, "...why?"

"Don't be like that, here." She said, and gave him the Howalons. He looked at it questionably. "I bought you a box too. Think of it as a 'Thank you' for taking care of my brother. I really appreciate you being his friend throughout these years" She said with a warm smile. Natsume continues to stare.

"I should put You-chan into bed, so I'll go back to the dorms. Today was fun, and even though we didn't really hang out together, maybe we should do it again next time...when we don't skip class" Mikan said. While holding onto Youichi as she secretly activates her strength alice in one arm, the other was trying to gather her Howalon box and jewelry bag. Through a bit of difficulty, she was able to balance carrying her brother and the merchandises.

"Well then, I'll be off" she said, then walks towards the direction of the bus.

 _'Thank goodness the strength alice I kept would come in handy'_ the brunette thought.

All of a sudden, Natsume was in front of her and she stopped on her tracks.

"W-what are you doing, Natsume?"

Instead of replying to her question, he grabbed the box and bag from her hand then walked away.

"Natsume! Where are you going?"

"Where else? We're going to Youichi's dorm" he said, and walked away.

Mikan looked at him from behind questionably, wondering if this was another way for him to kill time before school was over. Or maybe, the other possibility is that he's actually a really nice dude that worries the safety of a girl and a little boy. Either reasons, she highly appreciates his generosity because carrying a child and shopping bags was a handful.

 **Elementary Dorms**

Mikan covered Youichi with a blanket and kissed him on the forehead.

"Good night, You-chan"Mikan whispered, then left the room with her jewelry bag. Natsume already dropped the goods near the doorway, so the only thing in his hand was the Howalon box.

"Thank you for the help Natume-kun. I wouldn't be able carry him and the bags all by myself if it wasn't for you." Said Mikan. Though she could have handled it, but the thought counts right?

" _Maybe he wasn't a prick at all, but one of those "Tsunderes" Sergio once told me about. He acts like an asshole, but is in fact a gentle dude with a mean glare? He's probably a nice guy that…"_

"New girl, we need to talk." He said abruptly with eyes that shows no jokes.

"… _who seems to want to slaughter me"_ she finished. She gulped down her throat, and responded with an "Okay".

* * *

 **In front of the Elementary Dorms**

Natsume and Mikan were sitting at a bench near the Elementary dorms, and the brunette was nervous as fuck. Will he set her hair on fire like the rumors says? Will he tell her that from now on, she should fuck off and leave him alone? Did he see through that lie Youichi made, cause that was all his doing about that whole adoption nonsense. Mikan once sneaked a peak on Youichi's profile, and it seems to her that they were a loving family that runs a Buddhist temple. If Natsume were to ever find out about that, he would find out that this whole relationship was a farce, and probably ridicule her as a pedophile for blood pacting with a 6 year old.

"Hey New girl." Natusme said.

Mikan shot her head up to his direction with sweat dripping from her temples.

"Y-yes Natsume?" Mikan asked.

Instead of being burned to death by him, he offered her a Howalon.

"...Whaa?" She questioned. The boys hand was still offering her the candy. With hesitation and confusion, she took the boys candy.

"T-Thank you" She replied. Without a word, the boy silently ate the howalons. Actually, it has been that way for a few minutes. During that time, Mikan looks up at the sky, but occasionally looks at Natsume to figure out what in the world he's gonna do.

But the brunette has to admit, Natsume sure was a handsome fellow when he's not talking. His chiseled faced makes him look like a statue. His raven hair hitting against his face made him look dazzling and model-like. But what's most beautiful about him are his bright red eyes reflecting light. Sergio was right, he was one hunk of meat.

"So I was thinking..." He said as he interrupted Mikans dirty thoughts.

"Y-yes?" She replied, partially guilty of these inappropriate thoughts of him. If he had a mind-reading alice, she will surely burn in hell.

But he didn't do that. Instead, he stares at her without a word and its been that way for about a couple of minutes. His gaze made Mikan really uncomfortable and she was wishing he could stop.

Natsume suddenly stood up and said, "Nevermind, I'll just go back to my room".

He then left, which made Mikan finally take a big sigh of relief.

'Oh god that scared the shit out of me. I need something to drink' she then walked towards the nearest vending machine, which was located right next to the entrance to the dormitories.

Right in front of the doors was Persona standing there with his arms across his chest and tapping his foot. Its obvious he's upset.

"Oh shit." she said

To be continued...


	4. Alice Pt 1

Chapter 4: Alice

Natsume immediately locked his door as soon as he entered his room and sighed to himself. What happened at the benches was totally uncalled for, which was what made him scared and walked away. Initially, he wanted to interrogate the girl about Persona, the academy, everything she could possibly know. But he couldn't.

Why didn't he do that? It was because the new girl was fucking gorgeous, she left him speechless. When the wind blew her flowing brunette curls, he swore she smelled like strawberries. When he saw how the sunset hits her face, he saw she was blinding him with her beauty. How her eyes sparkle was so dazzling, that he was mesmerized by her stare.

But it wasn't just on the bench when he noticed these strange feelings. He also felt them when she smiled at Youichi on the way to Central Town, as well as that time she gave him the Howalons. Even when she carried Youichi on the way to the dorms was adorable… Natsume sighed again out of frustration.

He knew right away what these feelings were, and he hated himself for it. He only knew the girl in less than a day and he admits it's stupid, but he can't help the fact that he likes her. He doesn't know how much he likes her, but apparently plenty enough to keep him distracted.

Natsume thought that maybe it's one of the reasons the Academy assigned her to be his partner. Not only does she has Nullification, but she's so innocent and so pretty that even the notorious heartbreaker, Natsume Hyuuga, would fall over heels for her. She's the perfect watchdog, and Natsume has to go along with it like the time he was partnered with Koizumi.

Usually, he would be mad that the Academy would go that far to manipulate his feelings. Like how they tried using Koizumi Luna to get close to him.

Back in the day, Luna was also the new girl that everybody seemed to love. She was pretty, sweet and meek towards her classmates. However, Natsume knew instantly she was actually a manipulative bitch that would soul-suck anyone she could get her hands on. Honestly, half the class was practically zombies when she came into the picture. Hell, even some of the teachers were controlled by her because she was downright out of control. Surprisingly, it was Persona who reported to the higher ups that Luna was getting out of hand and was going to endanger the whole school if they don't do something.

Apparently, her initial mission was to stay low and watch over Natsume from doing anything stupid. If he showed signs of disobedience, she was allowed to use her Soul-Sucking Alice to maintain him. But the higher ups didn't know how unstable Luna was, and the mission utterly failed.

One would think that the Academy would've learned their lesson back then, but he guessed they didn't. Now they sent this beautiful creature as his partner, and for the first time in so long, he's afraid.

Unlike the crazy Luna, Mikan was obviously born to be loved by others. Sure she is obviously stupid and gets into ridiculous arguments, but she's a ray of sunlight that would warm up a person's day. She is genuinely kind, sweet and lovable, which are certain traits that Natsume and most people in his life don't possess. He swears that the more time he spends with this girl, the more he'll like her, which scares the living shit out of him.

The more he starts to like her, the more scared he gets when the Academy will one day take her away from him. He knows what's her mission, and he knows it's temporary. So the feeling that the Academy will once again take away the things he loves the most will add on to his list of hatred towards this school, so he should just stop liking her, right?

But can he resist her beautiful smile? Avoid the sight of her curly locks swaying in the wind? Stop his heart beating from her presence?

The more he ponders, the more unlikely he will come to hate her. This is a problem.

"What is wrong with me?" said Natsume as he stares at his ceiling.

* * *

 **High School Dormitories**

"Ah Persona, you're hurting me!" cried Mikan as he forcefully pulls her in the hallways, but he continued to stay quiet until he threw her into her room.

"Persona I'm sorry, I didn't mean to-"

"Did you know what you just did?" Persona angrily interrupted. Mikan's mouth instinctively shut themselves up in fear she would say something that further worsens the situation, cause she once experienced what happens when Persona is furious.

"Your mission was to just stay low and watch over Natsume. Other than that, you're allowed to live your life as a normal student, like you've always wanted. But instead, I heard that you ditched the first day of school and going on a date with...with that boy!" He said angrily.

"Persona, please! I can explain what happ-"

"If you were to get into trouble, I don't think I'll be able to help you Mikan-sama. They might lock you up in an institution like the last person that was given this job, and I won't have the power to do anything about it. O-or they might even do something worse. So please, don't you ever do anything like that again." He said as he hugged her tightly.

Mikan suddenly felt guilty for what she had done, and hugged the masked man back with a response "I understand".

Seriously, she knows the academy will do deep shit if things get out of hand. First of all, this is Alice Academy, where the impossible becomes possible. Manipulate fire? Corrosion? Normally stuff like that are only found in movies like the X-men and they became superheroes right? But this school doesn't help you control your alice for the greater good of the world. It's a government affiliate school that hone alices for the sake of their country. In this case, Mikan, Persona, and everyone here are technically property to the Japanese government. If they deemed Mikan unacceptable, then they'll get rid of her like they did to her parents.

Persona remembered that day as if it was yesterday, and he prays to God that it will never come.

"Mikan-sama, you know how much I love you and care for you." He said as he gripped her tightly.

"Yea, I know" she replied.

Of course she knows. She has known about his feelings for as long as she could remember. But it's not what you think, he just loves her because she is Yukihara's child.

He loves her because she has his Alice.

* * *

Without the mask, Persona is a man named Rei. It's been so long since anybody has seen his actually face, but he can digress just by looking at Sergio.

When Rei and Sergio were 8, they were abandoned by their parents because they both possessed the Corrosion Alice. But compared to his brother, Rei's Alice was obviously out of control to the point he was locked in a dungeon. Sergio, on the other hand, was given proper education and freedom as a student. Nevertheless, Sergio would secretly meet his brother at the small window at his prison cell in the Middle School Garden, and tell him about his day. Rei loves his brother and appreciates that he stops by whenever he can. However, he sometimes finds him annoying because he talks about three things, in particular, he couldn't understand.

First of all, Sergio once talked about how he's always nervous whenever a new semester starts, cause it's like a new beginning or something like that. He always says that he'll get better grades to move up the star rank and have his brother out. Rei didn't get that because the reason he's imprisoned was his Alice was unstable, so how moving up the hierarchy will change anything?

Secondly, his brother also talked about a new technology called a computer, where you're able to retain any knowledge through a thing called the Internet. Rei didn't understand the technicality of it unless this was done by an Alice.

Third of all, Sergio talks about his crushes in school. Such as, this girl with a psychic Alice that could foretell the future from her crystal ball. Another time was when he had a crush on this guy from another class that could grow plants.

Rei didn't understand the concept of love, because what was the use for loving a stranger if you could love your family? Back then, all he needed to get by was his brother and his unconditional love, until that one day.

For the first time in four years since his imprisonment, he had a visitor.

* * *

 **Elementary School Dorms**

Sergio silently unlocked and entered Youichi's room to check up on him. To his relief, the boy was sound asleep and he heard that he had a wonderful time at Central Town from Selena. He looked around and saw shopping bags near the doorway, but he left it alone for privacy sakes. He then sat next to the boy's bedside and caressed his grey hair lovingly.

"I'm glad you had a fun day" Sergio whispered and kissed the little boy on the cheek.

From the corner of his eye, he saw pajamas scattered everywhere on the floor. The man sighed, wondering if Youichi will ever learn how to clean after himself. He hates to admit it, but Sergio's not getting any younger. Sometimes, he could feel his back aching from bending down or his feet cracking from being on his feet all day.

After he threw Youichi's pajamas to the laundry, he searched through the boys top drawer to find another set of pajamas. Instead of finding what he was looking for, he found something interesting at the bottom corner of the drawer.

It was a polaroid picture that Sergio remembered taking a year ago with Mikan. He was really excited about using the camera when one of his students brought it to class one day. He didn't know why, but he really wanted one. Maybe it was because it resembles an instant camera he loved back in his childhood. But nowadays, people use their phones for pictures, so instant cameras were not sold anymore.

It was during Valentine's Day, which was the time Mikan comes and goes visiting the Academy. Miraculously, she didn't have any missions or training at that day, so Sergio took the opportunity to take her out with Youichi to dinner.

They went to a fancy restaurant located in Central Town, and it was the first time he ever had his kids in fancy clothing. Sergio made Mikan wear a skin tight red dress with a low v-cut to show off the lady she became. Little Youichi was also dashing with his gray suit and his hair gelled back.

Looking back, it made the man feel like a proud father because he can totally see his kids developing into fine individuals. At the same time, this made him sad.

As much as he cares about these kids, they aren't his. In the back of his mind, he doubts to himself that the kids didn't turn out the way they were because of his influence, but it's who they already are. For instance, Youichi is a loving child because his parents were lovable as well. Mikan is admirable and powerful because Yukihara-sensei was adored by everyone and Yuka was strong as the rumors go.

Sergio, on the other hand, came from hateful parents that abandoned their children and a psycho brother that still doesn't know the difference between right from wrong. For as long as he can remember, he often thinks maybe he was a bad seed too. He had abided the laws of the academy by heart and worked as an Alice teacher after graduating. But one day, there will be a time where he'll be no better than his parents and brother.

Which was why back Rei did not change because of his brother, but for a man named Izumi Yukihara.

* * *

"Hello, you must be Rei" said the dazzling man with the shiny blonde hair and warm hazel eyes.

Rei, profound by this man, didn't say anything.

"Hey I won't bite. But I am good looking for the ladies to want a piece of me." The boy's response was full of disgust, and the man just ended up being embarrassed.

His name was Izumi Yukihara, and he was a handsome fellow that was assigned to take care of Persona. His brother, the High School Principal, requested Izumi to take over a child that was locked up for a while. Rei was neglected for so long because there was no one that could possibly stand against his strong corrosion alice. Even his twin brother, Sergio, wouldn't be able to survive from it. However, now that there was a formidable person that could look at him without fear and could properly give him what he needs, he could one day get out of his prison.

Hearing the story of Rei, Yukihara sympathized with this child. During his motorcycle gang days, many of his comrades were abused children, former sex-slaves or refugees from far away countries. Many of his members had a story about them, and it was his job as a leader to hear all of them. To listen and to understand their pains and struggles they undergo. How in the world did they affiliate themselves to his silly motorcycle gang if they can do something greater? They told him this group he organized gave these people a sense of belonging. It was his sincerity and his kindness that made these people turn their heads to him and decided to stay with him.

It was the same qualities that his older brother, Kazumi Yukihira, saw in him when he suggested Izumi to apply to become a teacher in Alice Academy. In addition to noticing his little brother was an Alice, he also saw his potential to change the way the school functioned. Instead of this strict, militaristic ways that would cause students to doubt themselves, Izumi could bring out the best in student, for he believed all alices are good. It's how you use them would you declare whether one's evil or good. That is why he is the most suitable to handle Rei.

The boy just stared at this man with cautious eyes. He was the first visitor he had after all these years, besides his brother and the occasional lady that brings him meals.

"But seriously, it's really nice to meet you. From here on out, I will come visit every day and teach you many things. I will bathe you, feed you, clothe you, I will take you as my own. I just hope that one day, Rei, you'll come to like me as much as I like you" he said. Then he leaned out his hands for a shake through the gates.

The boy was confused with him. Why would he say he likes him if this was the first time they met? Even more so, why in the world did he extend his hand to him? Doesn't he know he could kill him?

"Come on now kid, don't leave me hanging," he said. Then he pulled out his hand and shook it.

"Lesson 1: If you're introduced to someone, shake their hands. Wait, now if you think about it this is Japan. So the polite way to introduce yourself is through bowing. But whatever, you'll get the gist of it in the future." He laughed.

Rei was dumbfounded from this man's touch. In actuality, he was the first person that has ever touched him. He doesn't remember if his mother ever kissed him, or if Sergio ever hugged him. Nevertheless, this was the first time he ever felt a persons warmth. It felt so nice, Rei started to tear up.

"When I'm around, you don't have to be afraid. I will always take care of you"

As promised, Izumi would come to visit Rei every day after he was done with his class sessions and the occasional teacher meetings. At first, Rei was hostile around him, so they kept their distance between the bars. But after a month, Rei started to become adapted to his presence and would even allow him to enter his cage. During his visits, he would teach him how to read, write, solve simple math and so on. When Sergio comes to visit, Izumi would gladly invite Rei's brother inside and help him on his studies. With the help of adult supervision, Sergio was able to assist his brother without getting hurt in the process.

This was a time Rei was at his happiest. He was able to meet his twin brother face-to-face without boundaries, learn something new every day, but most importantly, feel loved? In all honesty, the boy really didn't know how he felt towards his teacher. All he could comprehend was that he felt happy when he was with him. Every day was like a new adventure, even if all of this took place in an underground cell.

It was until that day when Rei realized his feelings about his sensei.

One day, the middle school principal permitted Izumi for him and Rei to use the bathroom. One wouldn't be civilized if they don't know how to bathe properly right? Taking this as an opportunity to learn about one's body, Izumi would also teach him hygiene and sex education there as well. He brought toothbrushes, shampoo/conditioner, towels, and even a chart of the human body.

Now you may all wonder, why in the world would he teach a young body as indecent as sex education? Actually, no, it's not indecent at all. As Rei's body starts to show changes, Izumi believed it would be important to understand what one will be expecting of the body and the safety precautions of the inevitable, sex. As it was appropriate to teach children nowadays in the age of 9 for girls and 10 for boys, it is certain that Rei should learn too as he was almost 13 years old. Early awareness about these topics are really important, especially if you want to protect yourself.

But on that day, Rei finally figured out what he felt around Izumi.

He was in love with him.

It was different from the love that he has with Sergio, because Rei's heart begins to beat whenever Izumi was close to him. He even started to notice things about him that he had never noticed before, like how sharp his chin was, his long eyelashes, his pink lips, and his broad shoulders. Whenever he gets a pat in the head, he imagines his soft fingers caressing his face.

The one and only person that would ever notice the things Rei was feeling was Sergio.

* * *

 **Elementary School Dorms**

Sergio's phone vibrated, and it was a call from Persona.

"Hello, brother dearest. How may I help you?" He answered with a bit of sass.

"Mikan-sama's friend is finally awake, and I would like it if you could check up on her" Persona said with a serious tone.

"Oh my god, she's awake?"

"Yeah, this afternoon. The nurse said 'She'll be undergoing rehabilitation tomorrow' and I was told it would be great if she had company" Persona said.

"I'm fine being with her and all, but don't you think it's appropriate to send Mikan-sama instead? I mean, they're best friends and stuff" Sergio asked.

"….let's just say I grounded her…"

"…what did you do?"

"…" Then Persona hanged up.

Sergio sighed. He honestly doesn't know what's going through his brother's head.

He still doesn't know if he considers himself as a father figure, a brother figure or anything platonic along that line. But Sergio has this intuition that Persona probably misplaced his feelings for Izumi-sensei towards Mikan.

Is it her kind personality that resembles her father so?

The way she acts?

Is it her Alice?

* * *

It's been about two years and to Sergio's utter surprise, it seems like his brother hasn't laid hands on Izumi-sensei. His speculation was that although Sensei could nullify his brothers alice, they could only touch each other for a certain amount of time. Rei once told him that the longest he could touch Izumi's hand was about 10 minutes. Therefore, his brother probably has this delusion that if he touched sensei, he could taint him or destroy him or something dirty around that line.

Normally, Sergio would encourage others to follow their hearts and do things they love to do. Heck, even Sergio gets naughty with some high school boys behind the school gym. However, it's been confirmed that Sensei was going out with an Alice high school student. But she's no ordinary Alice user, but the infamous Alice reaper that even his friends are afraid of. The Elementary School Principal's sweetheart. The national treasure, you name it. Overall, it would terribly break his brother's heart if he knew of sensei's lover, and the least Sergio would want was for Rei to meet her.

But as if God didn't hear Sergio's prayers, it was fated for Rei to meet Yuka for a golden opportunity.

During these two years, Izumi realized how powerful Rei's Alice was. It was so out of control, that his own skin is gradually turning black. For this child's sake, he needed to figure out how to suppress it. If not, he fears this child will die. But recently, he figured out a plan that could possibly save this boy he holds dear.

One day, Izumi-sensei brought Yuka into Rei's dungeon in hopes to take some of his Alice away. He admits that it was a dick move to ask his girlfriend for a favor, regarding of her Alice she wholesomely hates. But luckily, she was happily obliged if her Alice could save someone.

Rei and Sergio, on the other hand, were not pleased to see her. Rei reacts to strangers with extreme caution, so his Alice seems to be lethal than usual. If Yuka wasn't careful, she could get herself killed. Sergio was upset for a different reason, where he was upset that he would have the balls to bring his goddamn girlfriend here.

Izumi could feel and see the tension floating in the air from the twin boys, but he promised to himself that Rei was getting out of there.

No matter what.

* * *

 **High School Dorms**

Persona's phone rang, and looked at his screen for the caller ID. It had the name Kuonji, where little did everyone know, was the name of the Elementary School Principal.

"I'm sorry, I gotta take this, " he said and turned away from Mikan.

The brunette stared at Persona's back and waited for him. Surely, she knows what he'll say next. It doesn't take a psychic Alice to figure out what will happen next.

After 5 minutes, Persona finally hangs up.

"You have a mission tonight." He said to her, then opens her top drawer to throw her her white cat mask.

'I knew it' Mikan thought.

To be continued...


End file.
